Are You On A Leash?

Matthew 9:9

As Jesus went on from there, He saw a man called Matthew, sitting in the tax collector’s booth; and He said to him, “Follow Me!” And he got up and followed Him.

I’m convicted about my attitude towards following Jesus. Jake, my fifty pound dog, has two modes of operation when we go on a walk. He either pulls me or I drag him. After graduating from two (yes two) eight-week dog training courses, he still refuses to walk along beside me. Oh, he understands the word “heel,” he just doesn’t care to comply with his loving (as of now) master’s commands.

I heard an old praise song on the radio yesterday. “Step by step you’ll lead me, and I will follow you all of my days.” While singing, it was as if the Lord revealed Himself to me just enough to make me uncomfortable in my hypocrisy. I didn’t really mean what I was singing. If my actions dictated my words, Rich Mullin’s song would have sounded more like, “Step by step you’ll pull me, and I will follow you all of my days.”

I bring this up because too many “Christians” have the wrong idea of what it means to “follow Jesus.” The book of Matthew repeatedly shows us what it means to really follow the Lord. Peter dropped his nets immediately. Matthew walked away from his tax collector’s booth. These men were true followers of Christ. They dropped everything at the Lord’s request. There was no need for Jesus to pull them down the road like I am so often found doing with Jake.

Will you truly follow Jesus today or will you be pulled down the “straight and narrow.” Granted, your Master is much more patient and loving than Jake’s is, but the consequences of a stubborn heart are more intense as well.